Non-transitory computer-readable medium storing output instructions to control portable terminal and portable terminal

ABSTRACT

A portable terminal includes a user interface, a memory, a network interface, and a controller, and performs operations including: performing a first acquiring processing of acquiring a data identification information; performing a second acquiring processing of acquiring operation information representing output operations, performing a first output instructing processing of transmitting output instructing information to a output device via the network interface, the output instructing information being information for outputting a content data identified by the data identification information by a target operation; and performing, when it is determined that the operation identification information represents one output operation, a second output instructing processing of transmitting the output instructing information to the output device via the network interface, wherein the target operation of the second output instructing processing is the output operation represented by the operation information.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority from Japanese Patent Application No.2015-109464 filed on May 29, 2015, the entire subject matter of which isincorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure relates to output instructions for outputting contentdata and a portable terminal for executing the output instructions.

BACKGROUND

A background art discloses a printing application which causes a user todesignate image data stored, and the like, in a portable terminal andcauses a printer to print images represented by the designated imagedata. Also, a background art discloses an application which transfersimage data to the printing application.

SUMMARY

Recent printers are so-called multi-function peripherals (abbreviated asMFPs) being able to perform not only a printing operation to recordimages on sheets but also a FAX transmitting operation to fax images.However, there is a problem that the background printing application isimpossible to instruct MFPs to perform faxing operations.

This disclosure provides output instructions which can instruct anoutput device being able to perform a plurality of output operations toperform any one of the plurality of output operations.

In view of the above, a non-transitory computer-readable mediumaccording to this disclosure stores output instructions to control aportable terminal including a user interface, a memory, and a networkinterface, the network interface being configured to be electricallyconnected to a plurality of output devices each of which is able toperform at least one of a plurality of output operations of outputtingcontent data, the memory being configured to store activation sourceinstructions that are able to cause the portable terminal to activatethe output instructions and to perform a processing of notifying theoutput instructions of data identification information identifying thecontent data, the output instructions and the activation sourceinstructions being executable by a processor. The output instructionscause the portable terminal to perform operations comprising:performing, in response to a user operation of designating one of theplurality of output devices via the user interface, a storage controlprocessing of storing device identification information identifying thedesignated output device, in the memory; performing, when the outputinstructions are activated by the activation source instructions, afirst acquiring processing of acquiring the data identificationinformation.; performing a second acquiring processing of acquiringoperation information representing output operations, which is able tobe performed by the output device identified by the deviceidentification information; performing a first determining processing ofdetermining whether the operation information represents one outputoperation or a plurality of output operations; performing, when it isdetermined in the first determining processing that the operationinformation represents a plurality of output operations, a firstreceiving processing of receiving an operation of designating a targetoperation which one of the plurality of output operations represented bythe operation information, via the user interface; performing a firstoutput instructing processing of transmitting output instructinginformation to the output device via the network interface, the outputinstructing information being information for outputting the contentdata identified by the data identification information by the targetoperation; and performing, when it is determined in the firstdetermining processing that the operation identification informationrepresents one output operation, a second output instructing processingof transmitting the output instructing information to the output devicevia the network interface, wherein the target operation of the secondoutput instructing processing is the output operation represented by theoperation information.

According to this disclosure, in a case where an output device is ableto perform a plurality of output operations, when a user designates anoutput operation from among the plurality of output operations, contentdata is output by the designated output operation. Therefore, it ispossible to make the output device perform an output operation which auser desires.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing and additional features and characteristics of thisdisclosure will become more apparent from the following detaileddescriptions considered with the reference to the accompanying drawings,wherein:

FIG. 1 is a view illustrating a schematic configuration of a recordingsystem 100 according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2A is a block diagram of a MFP 10, and FIG. 2B is a block diagramof a portable terminal 50;

FIGS. 3A and 3B show examples of information stored in a data storagearea 62B, wherein FIG. 3A shows a device ID and operation information,and FIG. 3B shows a device update flag;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of a standard activation processing;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of an external activation processing;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of a device selecting processing;

FIGS. 7A and 7B show display examples of a display 53, wherein FIG. 7Ashows a menu screen, and FIG. 7B shows a main screen which does notinclude any device switching message;

FIGS. 8A and 8B show display examples of the display 53, wherein FIG. 8Ashows a main screen including a device switching message, and FIG. 8Bshows a device selection screen;

FIGS. 9A and 9B show display examples of the display 53, wherein FIG. 9Ashows a data selection screen, and FIG. 9B shows a preview screen;

FIGS. 10A and 10B show display examples of the display 53, wherein FIG.10A shows a map designation screen, and FIG. 10B shows a preview screenwhich is displayed in a case where operation information represents aplurality of output operations;

FIGS. 11A and 11B show display examples of a preview screen, whereinFIG. 11A shows a preview screen which is displayed in a case whereoperation information represents only one output operation, and FIG. 11Bshows a preview screen which is displayed when a FAX switching icon 128of FIG. 10A is selected;

FIG. 12 shows a display example of a preview screen which is displayedwhen a device switching icon 119 of FIG. 10B is selected; and

FIG. 13 is a view for explaining a sharing function which is implementedby a sharing API.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, an embodiment of this disclosure will be described withreference to appropriate drawings. Also, it goes without saying that theembodiment to be described below is just an example of this disclosure,and the embodiment of this disclosure can be appropriately modifiedwithout changing the scope of this disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a view schematically illustrating a recording system 100according to the present embodiment. The recording system 100 shown inFIG. 1 is composed of multi-function peripherals 10A and 10B (whichhereinafter will also be referred to collectively as “MFPs 10”) and aportable terminal 50. The MTPs 10 and the portable terminal 50 areelectrically connected. The MFPs 10 and the portable terminal 50 may beconnected via a communication network 101 such as a wired LAN or awireless LAN, or may be connected by USB cables or the like. Also, astate where a plurality of devices is able to be communicated is anexample of a state where the plurality of devices is electricallyconnected.

As shown in FIG. 2A, each MFP 10 mainly includes a printer 11, a scanner12, a FAX unit 13, a display 23, a user interface 24, a networkinterface 25, a memory slot 26, a CPU 31, a memory 32, and acommunication bus 33. Individual components constituting the MFP 10 areconnected to one another via the communication bus 33. The MFPs 10 areexamples of output devices.

The printer 11 performs a printing operation of recording imagesrepresented by image data on recording sheets. Recording sheets areexamples of sheets or recording media. As the recording scheme of theprinter 11, a known scheme such as an inkjet scheme or anelectrophotographic scheme can be used. The scanner 12 performs ascanning operation of reading images recorded on documents andgenerating image data. The FAX unit 13 performs a FAX transmittingoperation and a FAX receiving operation of transmitting or receivingimage data in a scheme based on a FAX protocol.

The printing operation and the FAX transmitting operation from among theplurality of operations described above are examples of outputoperations of outputting contents represented by content data. However,operations performed by MFP 10 are not limited thereto. The MFP 10 mayperform, an example of the output operations, a medium storage operationof storing content data acquired from the portable terminal 50 in aportable storage medium mounted to the memory slot 26. The MFP 10 mayperform, as another example of the output operations, an operation ofcontrolling the display 23 to display images represented by image dataacquired from the portable terminal 50.

Operations which are is able to be performed between the MFPs 10A and10B may be different. In the present embodiment, the MFP 10A is able toperform a printing operation and a FAX transmitting operation, and theMFP 10B is able to perform a printing operation, a FAX transmittingoperation, and a medium storage operation. Also, an output device is notlimited to a device which is able to perform a plurality of operationsand may be able to perform only a single operation. In an MIB of eachMFP 10, for example, a device ID identifying the corresponding MFP 10,and operation information representing operations, which is able to beperformed by corresponding MFP 10, may be defined in advance. Forexample, the operation information may include operation IDs identifyingthe operations which are able to be performed. The operation IDs areexamples of operation identification information.

The display 23 has a display screen for displaying a variety ofinformation. An LCD, an OELD, or the like can be used as the display 23.

The user interface 24 receives user's operations for selecting objectsdisplayed on the display screen of the display 23. Specifically, theuser interface 24 has buttons, and outputs various operation signalsassociated with pushed buttons, to the CPU 31. Also, the user interface24 may have a membranous touch sensor superimposed on the display screenof the display 23. That is, the display 23 may be configured as a touchpanel display.

Meanwhile, the term “object” means an image which is selectable byoperating the user interface 24 of the user. As an example, objects maybe character strings displayed on the display 23, and when the userpushes direction keys of the user interface 24, one of the objects maybe highlighted and then the user pushes a determination button of theuser interface 24, the highlighted object may be selected. As anotherexample, in a case where the user interface 24 is a touch panel, theobjects may be icons, buttons, links, and the like displayed on thedisplay 23, and an object displayed at a touched position may beselected.

The user interface 24 implemented as a touch panel receives user'soperations touching the display screen of the display 23. Also, the userinterface 24 outputs position information representing the touchedpositions on the display screen. As the upper left end of the displayscreen is the origin, and the right direction is the positive directionof the x axis, and the downward direction is the positive direction ofthe y axis, the position information can be expressed as coordinates (x,y) on an x-y plane. The touch panel can be used a known scheme such asan electrostatic capacitance scheme or a resistive film scheme.

Incidentally, in this specification, the term “touch” includes everyoperation by bringing inputting media into contact with the displayscreen. Touch examples are a tap operation by detaching a touchedinputting medium from the display screen in a predetermined time, a longtouch operation by stopping a touched inputting medium on the displayscreen, a slide operation by sliding a touched inputting medium on thedisplay screen, a flick operation by sliding a touched inputting mediumwith acceleration equal to or higher than a threshold value, a pinch-inoperation by sliding two inputting media touched at different locationson the display screen toward each other, a pinch-out operation bysliding two inputting media touched at different locations on thedisplay screen away from each other, and the like.

Also, the term “touch” may include not only a case where an inputtingmedium is brought into contact with the display screen but also a casewhere an inputting medium is brought to a position close to the displayscreen. Further, the inputting media may be user's fingers, touch pens,etc. Hereinafter, an operation by taping the position of an icondisplayed on the display 53 will be described as an example of anoperation of selecting the corresponding icon.

The network interface 25 is an interface for performing communicationwith external devices via the communication network 101. That is, theMFP 10 outputs a variety of information to the portable terminal 50 viathe network interface 25, and receives a variety of data or a variety ofinformation from the portable terminal 50 via the network interface 25.A specific communication procedure of the network interface 25 is notlimited. For example, Wi-Fi (a trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance) can beused. Also, the MFP 10 may have an installation interface such as a USBcable, instead of the network interface 25.

The memory slot 26 is an interface which a portable storage medium canbe mounted to or removed from. The CPU 31 can read out data orinformation from a portable storage medium mounted to the memory slot26, or write data or information in a portable storage medium mounted tothe memory slot 26. Although specific examples of a portable storagemedium are not limited, and the portable storage medium may be a USBmemory, a SD card, a CD-ROM, and a DVD-ROM.

The CPU 31 controls the operation of the whole MFP 10. On the basis of avariety of information which is output from the user interface 24, avariety of information acquired from external devices via the networkinterface 25, and the like, the CPU 31 acquires various programs (to bedescribed below) from the memory 32 and executes those programs. Thatis, the CPU 31 and the memory 32 constitute an example of a controller.

The memory 32 has a program storage area 32A and a data storage area32B. The program storage area 32A stores an OS 34 and a control program35. Also, the control program 35 may be a single program, or may be anaggregate of a plurality of programs. The data storage area 32B storesdata or information necessary for executing the control program 35.

Also, in this specification, the term “data” and the term “information”represents a bit or a bit string which can be handled by a computer.That is, the two term are in common in that view. However, when thecomputer handles “data,” it is unnecessary for the computer to recognizethe meanings of individual bits. In contrast, when the computer handles“information,” an operation of the computer is diverged according to themeanings of individual bits. Also, a term “instruction” represents acontrol signal for prompting a device being a transmission destinationto perform a subsequent operation. An instruction may include“information” or may have characteristics as “information”.

Further, even when “data” or the “information” is changed in format (forexample, a text format, a binary format, a flag format, and so on) foreach computer, as long as it can be recognized that the meaning of thechanged data or information is identical to the meaning of the originaldata or information, the changed data or information are handled as dataor information identical to the original data or information. Forexample, information indicating “two” may be saved in one computer as anASCII code “0x32” which is text format information, and may be saved inanother computer as a binary number “10” which is binary formatinformation.

However, the term “data” and the term “information” are not strictlydistinguished and are permitted to be exceptionally handled. Forexample, data may be temporarily handled as information, and informationmay be temporarily handled as data. Further, while one thing is handledas data in one device, the one thing may be handled as information inanother device. Furthermore, information may be taken out from amongdata, or data may be taken out from among information.

The memory 32 may be configured, for example, by a RAM, a ROM, anEEPROM, an HDD, a buffer included in the CPU 31, or a combination ofthem.

Also, the memory 32 may be a computer-readable storage medium. Thecomputer-readable storage medium is a non-transitory medium. Thecomputer-readable storage medium is a non-transitory medium. Examples ofthe non-transitory medium include not only the above described examplesbut also other recording media such as a CD-ROM and a DVD-ROM. Also, thenon-transitory medium is also a tangible medium. Meanwhile, an electricsignal which carries a program which is downloaded from a server or thelike on the Internet is a computer-readable signal medium which is onetype of computer-readable medium, but is not non-transitorycomputer-readable storage media.

The programs stored in the program storage area 32A are executed by theCPU 31. However, in this specification, sometimes, the operation of eachprogram will be described without mentioning the CPU 31. That is, in thefollowing description, a description “a program “A” performs aprocessing “A”” may mean that “the CPU 31 performs the processing “A”described in the program “A””. This meaning is common to the portableterminal 50 to be described below.

Also, the programs stored in the program storage area 32A determineevents and operate according to the determination results. However, inthis specification, the operation of each program will be describedwithout describing the determination processing. In other words, in thefollowing description, a description “the control program performs aprocessing “A” according to a condition “A”” may mean that “the controlprogram determines whether the condition “A” is satisfied, and when itis determined that the condition “A” is satisfied, the control programperforms the processing “A””.

Also, the programs stored in the program storage area 32A specify,acquire, extract, or select data or the like. A processing of specifyingdata or the like is, for example, a processing of specifying a data itemaccording to a condition from among a plurality of data items, andstoring the specified data item or an information item identifying thespecified data item in a predetermined storage area. Informationidentifying data or the like is, for example, identification informationidentifying the data or the like, the index of an array where the dataor the like is stored, or the pointer of a storage area where the dataor the like is stored. This meaning is common to processing of a programfor acquiring, extracting, or selecting data or the like.

An OS 34 is a basic program which provides an API for controlling theprinter 11, the scanner 12, the FAX unit 13, the display 23, the userinterface 24, the network interface 25, the memory slot 26, and so onwhich are hardware constituting the MIT 10. That is, each of the abovedescribed programs controls a corresponding piece of hardware by callingthe API which is provided by the OS 34. However, in this specification,the operation of each program will be described without mentioning theOS 34. That is, in the following description, a description “a program“B” controls hardware “C”” may means that “the program “B” controls thehardware “C” via the API of the OS 34.” This meaning is common to theportable terminal 50 to be described below.

As shown in FIG. 2B, the portable terminal 50 mainly includes a display53, a user interface 54, a network interface 55, a CPU 61, a memory 62,and a communication bus 63. The display 53, the user interface 54, thenetwork interface 55, the CPU 61, the memory 62, and the communicationbus 63 which are included in the portable terminal 50 are similar to thedisplay 23, the user interface 24, the network interface 25, the CPU 31,the memory 32, and the communication bus 33 which are included in theMFP 10, and thus repetitive descriptions thereof will not be made. TheCPU 61 and the memory 62 is an example of a controller. Examples of theportable terminal 50 is a smart phone, a portable phone, and a tabletterminal.

In a program storage area 62A of the memory 62, an OS 64 as an exampleof activation source instructions, an output program 65 as an example ofoutput instructions, and a map program 66 are stored. Also, a datastorage area 62B of the memory 62 stores a variety of information shownin FIG. 3 is stored. Further, in the data storage area 62B, a contentdata folder for storing content data may be provided. Examples ofcontent data is image data, photo data, document data, spreadsheet data,presentation data, video data, and music data.

As shown in FIGS. 7 to 12, the display 53 of the portable terminal 50 isdivided into a common display area 80 and a program display area 81. Inthe common display area 80, regardless of the display content of theprogram display area 81, a status bar is displayed by the OS 64. In thestatus bar, a variety of information is displayed by the OS 64. In thestatus bar, for example, a back icon 82 to be described below, the titleof a screen displayed on the program display area 81, an iconrepresenting the remaining battery capacity of the portable terminal 50,an icon representing the communication state of the network interface55, and an icon representing a push notification indicating that theportable terminal 50 receives a notification from an external service,and so on are displayed. In the program display area 81, a screen whichis generated by a program which is executed in a foreground isdisplayed.

Hereinafter, a description “a program controls the display 53 to displaya screen” means that a program screen is displayed in the programdisplay area 81 and a status bar is displayed in the common display area80. The program screen means a screen which is displayed in the programdisplay area 81 in response to an instruction of the program. However,the display 53 may be switchable between a partial screen mode, in whichthe display area is divided into the common display area 80 and theprogram display area 81, and a full screen mode, in which the whole ofthe display area becomes the program display area 81.

Examples of the OS 64 include Android (a registered trademark of GoogleInc.), iOS (a registered trademark of Cisco Systems, Inc.), WindowsPhone (a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation) operatingsystem. The OS 64 can execute a plurality of programs installed in theportable terminal 50, in parallel. A plurality of programs can bevirtually executed in parallel, for example, by a time divisionmultiplex scheme. Also, when the OS 64 executes one of a plurality ofprograms being executed in the foreground and executes the otherprograms in a background.

The foreground is, for example, a state where a program screen accordingto execution of the corresponding program is displayed on most of thedisplay area of the display 53. Most of the display area may refer to,for example, the program display area 81. The background is, forexample, a state where a program screen according to execution of aprogram different from the corresponding program is displayed in most ofthe display area of the display 53. In other words, the portableterminal can control display 53 to display only program screensaccording to execution of a program which is executed in the foreground,from among a plurality of programs being executed in parallel.

Also, the OS 64 provides a sharing function, by which activating asecond program designated by a first program and transferringinstructing information designated by the first program to the secondprogram is performed, for the programs installed in the portableterminal 50. The first program can use the sharing function, forexample, by executing an API which is provided by the OS 64(hereinafter, referred to as the “sharing API”). More specifically, thefirst program uses the program ID and designation information of thesecond program as parameters, thereby executing the sharing API. Withreference to FIG. 13, details of the sharing function will be described.

First, in STEP S1, a sharing source application 41 executes the sharingAPI of the OS 64 for implementing the sharing function. When the sharingAPI is executed, a URI, a type, and an action are obtained asparameters. The URI is information representing the address of sharingdata. The type is information representing the data format of thesharing data. The action is information representing the type (such asbrowsing, editing, transmitting, or printing) of a processing which isto be performed by the sharing source application on the sharing data.The URI, the type, and the action are examples of instructinginformation which are transmitted from the sharing source application toa sharing destination application.

Meanwhile, applications 42, 43, 44, etc., which are candidates for asharing source application preliminary declare the data formats ofsharing data and the types of processing, which are executable by theapplications 42, 43 and 44, for the OS 64. Therefore, the OS 64specifies applications, from among the applications 42, 43 and 44, whichis able to perform a processing represented by the action on sharingdata having the data format represented by the type in STEP S2, andcontrols the display 53 to display a list of the specified applications,in STEP S3. Then, in STEP S4, the OS 64 stands by in a state where itcan receive a user's operation of selecting one of the listedapplications via the user interface 54.

Subsequently, when the OS 64 receives a user's operation of selectingone of the listed applications via the user interface 54 in STEP S4, inSTEP S5, the OS activates the selected application using the URI, thetype, and the action as parameters. In the following embodiment, the mapprogram 66 corresponds to the application 41 of FIG. 13, and the outputprogram 65 corresponds to one of the applications 42 to 44 of FIG. 13.

Also, the processing of STEPS S2 to S5 may be performed by a sharingsource application. In this case, in STEP S2, the sharing sourceapplication acquires information specifying the applications being ableto perform the processing represented by the action on sharing datahaving the data format represented by the type, from the OS 64.Subsequently, in STEP S5, the sharing source application executes thesharing API of the OS 64 to activate an application selected by a user'soperation.

The output program 65 is a program for controlling a MFP 10 connectedvia the network interface 55 to perform an operation on content data.The output program 65 transmits information, such as recordinginstructing information for causing to perform a printing operation,scan instructing information for causing to perform a scanningoperation, FAX instructing information for causing to perform a FAXtransmitting operation, or storage instructing information for causingto perform a medium storage operation, to a MFP 10 via the networkinterface 55. Recording instructing information, scan instructinginformation, FAX instructing information, and medium storage instructinginformation are examples of output instructing information. Also, beforetransmitting the output instructing information, the output program 65controls the display 53 to display a preview screen.

The map program 66 is a program for making a user designate an arbitraryarea of a map image and transferring image data representing a map imageof the designated area to the output program 65. The map program 66 isan example of an activation source program for receiving a user'soperation of designating content data. Also, the activation sourceprogram is a program for designating designation information foridentifying received content data, for the OS 64, and activating theoutput program 65 using the sharing function. Also, specific examples ofthe activation source program are not limited to the map program 66, andmay include a paint program for editing images according to user'soperations and transferring image data representing the edited images tothe output program 65.

The data storage area 62B can store a device ID, and operationinformation corresponding to the device ID, as shown in FIG. 3A.Hereinafter, a record shown in FIG. 3A is also referred to as anoperation information record. Also, the operation information record isnot registered in advance when the output program 65 is installed, butis registered in a device selecting processing to be described below.

Device IDs are examples of device identification information identifyingthe MFPs 10A and 10B. In the present embodiment, the device ID of theMFP 10A is “MFP-A”, and the device ID of the MFP 10B is “MFP-B”. A MFP10 which is identified by the device ID included in the operationinformation record is an example of a first device. Operationinformation is information representing operations which is able to beperformed by a MFP 10 which is identified by a corresponding device ID,and is acquired from the MFP 10 which is identified by the correspondingdevice ID. In FIG. 3A, “PRINT” represents a printing operation, and “FAXTRANSMITTING” represents a FAX transmitting operation, as an example. Inother words, in FIG. 3A, the MFP 10A is able to perform a printingoperation and a FAX transmitting operation, as an example.

Also, the data storage area 62B stores a device update flag as shown inFIG. 3B. The device update flag is a flag representing whether theoperation information record shown in FIG. 3A has been updated or not.In other words, in the device update flag, any one of “ON” representingthat the operation information record has been updated and “OFF”representing that the operation information record has not been updatedis set by the output program 65. The initial value of the device updateflag is “OFF”.

With reference to FIGS. 4 to 12, the operation of the recording system100 according to the present embodiment will be described. The recordingsystem 100 performs a processing of making a MFP 10 perform an outputoperation of content data designated by a user's operation on theportable terminal 50.

First, the OS 64 of the portable terminal 50 controls the display 53 todisplay a menu screen and displays a status bar in the common displayarea 80. FIG. 7A is an example of the menu screen. A menu screen shownin FIG. 7A includes a plurality of program icons 111, 112, 113, 114, and115. The program icons 111 to 115 correspond to programs installed inthe portable terminal 50. For example, the program icon 114 correspondsto the output program 65, and the program icon 115 corresponds to themap program 66. The OS 64 receives selection of any one of the programicons 111 to 115 via the user interface 54. When the OS 64 receivesselection of the program icon 114 via the user interface 54, the OS 64activates the output program 65. Selection of the program icon 114 is anexample of a user's operation of instructing activation of the outputprogram 65.

[Standard Activiation Processing]

When the OS 64 having received selection of the program icon 114activates the output program 65 of the portable terminal 50, the outputprogram performs a standard activation processing. In the standardactivation processing, the output program 65 displays various screensfor receiving user's operations of designating content data, an outputoperation, and an output device, and receives user's operations via thedisplayed screens. Hereinafter, content data designated by the user willbe referred to as “designation data”, and an output operation designatedby the user will be referred to as a “designation operation”, and anoutput device designated by the user will be referred to as a“designation device”. In this case, the output program 65 makes thedesignation device perform the designation operation on the designationdata. With reference to FIG. 4, details of the standard activationprocessing will be described.

First, in STEP S11, the output program 65 determines the value of thedevice update flag shown in FIG. 3B. When “OFF” has been set in thedevice update flag (“No” in STEP S11), in STEP S12, the output program65 controls the display 53 to display a main screen shown in FIG. 7B.Meanwhile, when “ON” has been set in the device update flag (“Yes” inSTEP S11), in STEP S13, the output program 65 controls the display 53 todisplay a main screen shown in FIG. 8A. Also, in STEP S13, the outputprogram 65 sets “OFF” in the device update flag. The processing of STEPSS12 and S13 are examples of a first display processing. The main screenis an example of an operation selection screen.

The main screen shown in FIG. 7B includes a plurality of operation icons116 and 117 and a device icon 119. The operation icons 116 and 117 areexamples of operation designation objects corresponding to operationsrepresented by operation information included in an operationinformation record. In other words, the operation icons 116 and 117correspond to operations which is able to be performed by a MFP 10identified by a device ID included in the operation information record.The device icon 119 is an example of a device switching object forcausing the output program 65 to perform a processing of switching adesignation device to another device. On the device icon 119, the deviceID “MFP-A” identifying the MFP 10A, which is a designation device atthat moment, is shown. Meanwhile, in a case where any operationinformation record has not been registered, on the device icon 119, acharacter string such as “UNSELECTED” may be displayed.

The main screen shown in FIG. 8A is displayed in a case where anoperation information record including the device ID “MFP-B” andoperation information “PRINT”, “FAX TRANSMISSION”, and “MEDIUM STORAGE”is stored in the data storage area 62B. In other words, the main screenshown in FIG. 8A includes operation icons 116 to 118 corresponding tothe operation information “PRINT”, “FAX TRANSMISSION”, and “MEDIUMSTORAGE”, and a device icon 120 representing that a device having thedevice ID “MFP-B” has been a designated as a designation device. Also,the main screen shown in FIG. 8A includes a device switching message“MEDIUM STORAGE FUNCTION BECOMES USABLE.”. Details of the deviceswitching message will be described below.

Subsequently, in STEP S14, the output program 65 receives selection ofan icon included in the main screen, via the user interface 54. Theprocessing of STEP S14 is an example of a third receiving processing.For example, when selection of position of the device icon 119 isreceived via the user interface 54 (“DEVICE ICON” in STEP S14), in STEPS15, the output program 65 performs a device selecting processing. Thedevice selecting processing is a processing of making the user select adesignation device. Also, even in a case where the device icon 120 shownin FIG. 8A is selected, the same processing is performed. With referenceto FIG. 6, details of the device selecting processing will be described.

First, in STEP S41, the output program 65 searches the plurality of MFPs10 being able to be communicated via the network interface 55 among MFPs10 being able to perform the designation operation. The output program65 transmits a request for requesting transmission of device IDs andoperation information stored in MIBs, to the MFPs 10 via the networkinterface 55, for example, using SNMP. Subsequently, the output program65 receives the device IDs and the operation information as responsesfrom the MFPs 10 via the network interface 55. Next, the output program65 compares the operation ID of the designation operation with operationIDs included in the operation information received from the MFPs 10.Then, the output program 65 specifies MFPs 10 having operationinformation including the operation ID of the designation operation, astarget MFPs. Meanwhile, at the stage of the device selecting processingof STEP S15, any designation operation has not been designated yet, theoutput program 65 specifies all of the MFPs 10A and 10B being able to becommunicated via the network interface 55, as target MFPs. Theprocessing of STEP S41 is an example of a specifying processing.

Additionally, operation information may be model informationrepresenting the models of the MFPs 10. In this case, the output program65 accesses to correspondence information representing thecorrespondence relations between the model information and operation IDscorresponding to the model information, and acquires the operation IDscorresponding to the received model information. In other words, thecorrespondence information are also information representing operationswhich is able to be performed by the MFPs 10 of the models representedby the model information. Also, the correspondence information may bestored in the portable terminal 50 in advance, or may be stored in acloud server (not shown).

Subsequently, in STEP S42, the output program 65 controls the display 53to display a device selection screen. FIG. 8B shows an example of thedevice selection screen. The device selection screen shown in FIG. 8Bincludes device icons 121 and 122. The device icons 121 and 122correspond to the MFPs 10A and 10B which have been specified as targetMFPs in STEP S41. Also, on the device icons 121 and 122, there arewritten the device IDs of the corresponding MFPs 10A and 10B.Subsequently, in STEP S43, the output program 65 receives selection ofan icon included in the device selection screen, via the user interface54. The processing of STEP S43 is an example of a second receivingprocessing.

For example, when selection of the device icon 122 is received via theuser interface 54 (“Yes” in STEP S43), in STEP S44, the output program65 receives the operation information of the MFP 10 corresponding to theselected device icon 122. The method receiving the operation informationis the same as that in the processing of STEP S41. Meanwhile, in a casewhere the MIBs of the MFPs 10 is referred in STEP S41, the processing ofSTEP S44 can be omitted. The processing of receiving operationinformation of STEP S41 and S44 are examples of a second acquiringprocessing. The MFP 10 corresponding to the selected device icon is anexample of a second device.

Subsequently, in STEP S45, the output program 65 stores an operationinformation record including the device ID “MFP-B” written on theselected device icon 122 and the operation information of the MFP 10Bidentified by the corresponding device ID (hereinafter, referred to asthe “new operation information record”), in the data storage area 62B.Also, in a case where any operation information record is not stored inthe data storage area 62B, the output program 65 newly stores the newoperation information record in the data storage area 62B. Thisprocessing is an example of a storage control processing.

Meanwhile, in a case where an operation information record (hereinafter,referred to as an old operation information record) is stored in thedata storage area 62B, the output program 65 compares the old operationinformation record and the new operation information record. When theold operation information record and the new operation informationrecord are different, in STEP S45, the output program 65 overwrites theold operation information record with the new operation informationrecord. This processing is an example of an updating processing. Inother words, in a case where a MFP 10 different from the designationdevice is selected in the device selecting processing, the designationdevice is switched by the updating processing. Meanwhile, when the oldoperation information record is identical with the new operationinformation record, the output program 65 skips the processing of STEPS45.

Also, in STEP S45, the output program 65 sets “ON” in the device updateflag and generates a device switching message. The device switchingmessage is a message which is included in the main screen displayed in acase where the value of the device update flag is “ON”. The deviceswitching message is a message for notifying that the designation devicehas been switched. Specifically, the output program 65 specifiesoperations which are not represented by the operation informationincluded in the old operation information record, from among theoperations represented by the operation information included in the newoperation information record. Then, the output program 65 generates adevice switching message for notifying that execution of the specifiedoperations becomes possible.

Alternatively, in STEP S45, the output program 65 may always overwritean old operation information record with a new operation informationrecord, without comparing the old operation information record and thenew operation information record. Also, only in a case where the oldoperation information record and the new operation information recordare different, the output program 65 may set “ON” in the device updateflag and generate a device switching message.

For example, in a case where the device ID included in the old operationinformation record is “MFP-A” and the device ID included in the newoperation information record is “MFP-B”, as shown in FIG. 8A, a deviceswitching message “MEDIUM STORAGE FUNCTION BECOMES USABLE.” isgenerated. Then, the device switching message is included in the mainscreen in the first display processing, which is initially performedafter the updating processing is performed. Alternatively, a deviceswitching message may be generated in STEP S12. In this case, the outputprogram 65 temporarily stores the old operation information record inSTEP S45, and deletes the corresponding old operation information recordin STEP S12.

Also, in the common display area 80 while the device selectingprocessing is being displayed in the program display area 81, the backicon 82 is also displayed. The back icon 82 is an example of a backobject to switch to a previous screen, which is most-recently displayedon the display 53. The back icon 82 is not displayed when the menuscreen or the main screen being the initial screen of the output program65 is displayed in the program display area 81, and the back icon 82 isdisplayed when any other screen is displayed in the program display area81. Alternatively, the back icon 82 may be displayed in the programdisplay area 81, not in the common display area 80. Also, the outputprogram 65 may make the back icon 82 display in the program display area81.

Then, when selection of the back icon 82 displayed together with thedevice selection screen is received via the user interface 54, the OS 64outputs notification information representing that the back icon 82 hasbeen selected, to the output program 65. When the output program 65receives the notification information output from the OS 64, the outputprogram 65 skips the processing of STEPS S43 to S45 and controls thedisplay 53 to display the main screen again. In other words, the mainscreen displayed on the display 53 immediately before the deviceselection screen was displayed is displayed again. In the presentembodiment, on the assumption that the back icon 82 displayed togetherwith the device selection screen shown in FIG. 8B has been selected andthe main screen shown in FIG. 7B has been displayed, the followingdescription will be described.

Referring to FIG. 4 again, when selection of one of the operation icons116 and 117 is received via the user interface 54 (“OPERATION ICON” inSTEP S14), the output program 65 temporarily stores an operation IDidentifying an operation corresponding to the selected operation icon116 or 117, and the device ID described on the device icon 119, in thedata storage area 62B. The temporarily stored operation ID is adesignation operation ID identifying the designation operation. Thetemporarily stored device ID is a designation device ID identifying thedesignation device. In the present embodiment, on the assumption thatthe operation ID of the printing operation has been temporarily storedas the designation operation ID, and the device ID “MFP-A” has beentemporarily stored as the designation device ID, the followingdescription will be described.

Subsequently, in STEP S16, the output program 65 controls the display 53to display a data selection screen. Next, in STEP S17, the outputprogram 65 receives selection of an icon included in the data selectionscreen, via the user interface 54. The processing of STEP S16 is anexample of a second display processing, and the processing of STEP S17is an example of a fourth receiving processing.

FIG. 9A shows an example of the data selection screen. A data selectionscreen shown in FIG. 9A includes a plurality of data icons 123, 124, and125. The data icons 123 to 125 are examples of data objectscorresponding to content data which can be designated as designationdata. On the data icons 123 to 125, there are described the data IDs(such as file names) of corresponding content data. The content datacorresponding to the data icons 123 to 125 may be stored in a contentdata folder in advance, or may be stored in a server (not shown) beingable to be communicated via the network interface 55, in advance.

When the output program 65 receives selection of one of the data icons123 to 125 via the user interface 54 (“Yes” in STEP S17), it temporarilystores content data corresponding to the selected data icon, as thedesignation data, in the data storage area 62B. Alternatively, theoutput program 65 may not store the designation data itself and maytemporarily store information specifying the designation data(hereinafter, referred to as a “designation data ID”), in the datastorage area 62B. The designation data ID may be, for example,information representing the storage location of the designation data,or may be a URL representing the designation data. In the presentembodiment, on the assumption that the data icon 123 is selected, thefollowing description will be continued. Meanwhile, when the outputprogram 65 receives notification information representing that the backicon 82 displayed together with the data selection screen has beenselected, from the OS 64, it controls the display 53 to display the mainscreen again.

When the output program 65 receives selection of the data icon 123 viathe user interface 54 (“Yes” in STEP S17), in STEP S18, the outputprogram controls the display 53 to display a preview screen.Subsequently, in STEP S19, the output program 65 receives selection ofan icon included in the preview screen, via the user interface 54. Theprocessing of STEP S18 is an example of a preview display processing,and the processing of STEP S19 is an example of the second receivingprocessing.

FIG. 9B shows an example of the preview screen. A preview screen shownin FIG. 9B includes a preview image 126, a print instructing icon 127,and a FAX switching icon 128. Meanwhile, the preview screen shown inFIG. 9B does not include any device switching icon to be describedbelow. The preview image 126 is an image which will be obtained byoutputting the designation data designated in STEP S17 by thedesignation operation designated in STEP S14. In other words, thepreview image 126 which will be obtained by recording an imagerepresented by image data identified by a file name “PHOTO.JPEG” on arecording sheet.

The print instructing icon 127 is an example of an output instructingobject to designate the printing operation as the designation operationand corresponding to an instruction for making the designation deviceperform the printing operation of the designation data. The FAXswitching icon 128 is an example of an operation switching objectcorresponding to an instruction for switching the designation operationfrom the printing operation to the FAX transmitting operation. In otherwords, the preview screen includes the output instructing objectcorresponding to the designation operation, and the operation switchingobject corresponding to the operation different from the designationoperation, from among the plurality of operations represented by theoperations of the operation information record. Meanwhile, in a casewhere the number of operations represented by the operation informationincluded in the operation information record is one, a preview screendoes not include any operation switching object.

When the output program 65 receives selection of the print instructingicon 127 via the user interface 54 (“OUTPUT ICON” in STEP S19), in STEPS20, the output program transmits print instructing information to theMFP 10A via the network interface 55. The print instructing informationis an example of output instructing information for making thedesignation device perform the printing operation of the designationdata. The print instructing information of the present embodimentincludes image data which is identified by the file name “PHOTO.JPEG”,and the designation operation ID identifying the output operation“PRINT”. The output program 65 transmits the corresponding printinstructing information to the MFP 10A which is the designation device,via the network interface 55. The processing of STEP S20 is an exampleof a third output instructing processing. Also, the print instructinginformation may not be the designation data itself and may include adesignation data ID such as a URL.

Meanwhile, although not shown, the control program 35 of the MFP 10Areceives the print instructing information from the portable terminal 50via the network interface 25. Then, the control program 35 controls theprinter 11 to perform the printing operation according to the receivedprint instructing information. In other words, the printer 11 recordsthe image represented by the content data “PHOTO.JPEG” included in theprint instructing information, on a recording sheet.

Referring to FIG. 4 again, when the output program 65 receives selectionof the FAX switching icon 128 included in the preview screen shown inFIG. 9B, via the user interface 54 (“SWITCHING ICON” in STEP S19), itswitches the designation operation ID temporarily stored in the datastorage area 62B, from the operation ID of the printing operation to theoperation ID of the FAX transmitting operation. Also, in STEP S18, theoutput program 65 controls the display 53 to display the preview screenagain. This processing is in common with the case where the switchingicon has been selected in STEP S35 or S36, and thus details thereof willbe described below. Thereafter, when the output program 65 receivesnotification information representing that the back icon 82 displayedtogether with the preview screen displayed in STEP S18 has beenselected, from the OS 64, it controls the display 53 to display the dataselection screen shown in FIG. 9A again.

Meanwhile, when the OS 64 receives selection of the program icon 115included in the menu screen, via the user interface 54, the OS 64activates the map program 66. When the OS 64 having received selectionof the program icon 115 activates the map program 66 of the portableterminal 50, the map program controls the display 53 to display a mapdesignation screen. FIG. 10A shows an example of the map designationscreen. A map designation screen shown in FIG. 10A includes a mapdisplay area 129 and a “PREVIEW” icon. Then, the map program 66 receivesuser's operations on the map display area 129 and the “PREVIEW” icon viathe user interface 54.

In the map display area 129, a part of a map image, which is can bedisplayed by map program 66, is displayed. When the map program 66 isactivated, in the map display area 129, for example, a map image 130including the current location of the portable terminal 50 acquired froma GPS is displayed. For example, the map program 66 acquires map imagedata representing the map image 130 which is a display object, from aserver (not shown) via the network interface 55. Specifically, the mapprogram 66 transmits a map image data request to the server via thenetwork interface 55, and receives the map image data as a response fromthe server via the network interface 55.

Thereafter, when the map program 66 receives a user's operation on theposition of the map display area 129 via the user interface 54, itchanges the map image 130 to be displayed in the map display area 129.The map program 66 acquires map image data representing the changed mapimage 130 from the server. For example, the map image 130 which isdisplayed in the map display area 129 is slid in response to a slideoperation, and is reduced in response to a pinch-in operation, and isenlarged in response to a pinch-out operation.

Also, when the map program 66 receives selection of the “PREVIEW” iconvia the user interface 54, the map image data representing the map image130 displayed on the map display area 129 is stored in the data storagearea 62B. Further, the map program 66 designates designation informationfor the OS 64, and activates the output program 65 by using the sharingfunction. In other words, the map program 66 uses the program ID of theoutput program 65 and the data ID of the map image data as parameters,thereby executing the sharing API.

[External Activation Processing]

When the sharing API is executed, the OS 64 controls the map program 66being executed in the foreground to finish or executes in the backgroundand then activates the output program 65 and executes the output programin the foreground. When the output program 65 is activated by the mapprogram 66 by using the sharing function, it performs an externalactivation processing. The external activation processing is aprocessing of making a designation device perform an output operation ofdesignation data designated by the map program 66. With reference toFIG. 5, details of the external activation processing will be described.

First, the output program 65 acquires designation information outputfrom the program activated by the output program 65 (“YES” in STEP S31).Specifically, the output program 65 executes an API for requestingdesignation information from the OS 64, thereby receiving designationinformation output from the OS 64, as a return value. Thereafter, theoutput program 65 temporarily stores a data ID included in the receiveddesignation information, as a designation data ID, in the data storagearea 62B. Subsequently, in STEP S32, the output program 65 determineswhether any operation information record is stored in the data storagearea 62B. The processing of STEP S31 is an example of a first acquiringprocessing, and the processing of STEP S32 is an example of a seconddetermining processing.

When it is determined that any operation information record is notstored in the data storage area 62B (“No” in STEP S32), in STEP S33, theoutput program 65 performs a device selecting processing. The processingof STEP S33 is the same as the processing of STEP S15, and thusrepetitive descriptions will be omitted. As a result of STEP S33, anoperation information record is registered in the data storage area 62B.In other words, in STEP S33, the output program 65 receives designationof a designation device. Meanwhile, when it is determined that anoperation information record is stored in the data storage area 62B(“Yes” in STEP S32), the output program 65 skips the processing of STEPS33.

Subsequently, in STEP S34, the output program 65 determines whether thedesignation device is able to perform a plurality of output operations.In other words, in STEP S34, the output program 65 determines whetherthe operation information included in the operation information recordshown in FIG. 3A represents a plurality of output operations. Theprocessing of STEP S34 is an example of a first determining processing.

When it is determined that the designation device is able to perform aplurality of output operations (“Yes” in STEP S34), in STEP S35, theoutput program 65 controls the display 53 to display a preview screenshown in FIG. 10B. Meanwhile, when it is determined that the designationdevice is able to perform only one output operation (“No” in STEP S34),in STEP S36, the output program 65 controls the display 53 to display apreview screen shown in FIG. 11A. Subsequently, in STEP S37, the outputprogram 65 receives selection of an icon included in the preview screen,via the user interface 54. The processing of STEPS S35 and S36 areexamples of the preview display processing, and the processing of STEPS37 is an example of a first receiving processing.

The preview screen shown in FIG. 10B includes a first preview image 131,a device icon 119, a print instructing icon 127 which is an example of afirst output instructing object, and a FAX switching icon 128 which isan example of a first operation switching object. The first previewimage 131 is an example of a preview image outputted by the printingoperation of the map image data identified by the data ID acquired inSTEP S31. Meanwhile, the preview screen shown in FIG. 11A is differentfrom the preview screen shown in FIG. 10B in that it does not include aFAX switching icon 128. A case where an operation switching object isnot displayed is an example of a case where the corresponding operationswitching object is not selectable. Also, the preview screen which isdisplayed in STEP S35 or S36 is different from the preview screen whichis displayed in STEP S18 in that it includes a device icon 119 or 120.

The first preview image 131 is an example of a preview image obtained byoutputting the map image data identified by the data ID acquired in STEPS31 by a printing operation which is a provisional designationoperation. Additionally, the output program 65 designates one of theplurality of output operations included in the operation informationrecord, as a provisional designation operation. For example, theprovisional designation operation may be designated in the MIB of theMFP 10 or may be set in the output program 65 in advance. The outputprogram 65 temporarily stores an operation ID identifying theprovisional designation operation, as a designation operation ID, in thedata storage area 62B. In other words, in a case where the provisionaldesignation operation is a FAX transmitting operation, instead of thepreview screen shown in FIG. 10B, a preview screen shown in FIG. 11B isdisplayed. From among the plurality of output operations represented bythe operation information of the operation information record, theprinting operation, which is the provisional designation operation, isan example of a first operation, and the FAX transmitting operation isan example of a second operation.

Subsequently, when the output program 65 receives selection of the printinstructing icon 127 via the user interface 54 (“OUTPUT ICON” in STEPS37), in STEP S38, it transmits print instructing information which isan example of the output instructing information, to the MFP 10A whichis the designation device, via the network interface 55. The printingoperation corresponding to the selected print instructing icon 127 is anexample of a target operation. The processing of STEP S38 to transmitthe print instructing information is the same as the processing of STEPS20 described already, and thus repetitive descriptions will be omitted.The processing of STEP S38 performed in response to that the printinstructing icon 127 shown in FIG. 10B is selected is an example of afirst output instructing processing. The processing of STEP S38performed in response to that the print instructing icon 127 shown inFIG. 11A is selected is an example of a second output instructingprocessing.

Meanwhile, when the output program 65 receives selection of the FAXswitching icon 128 via the user interface 54 (“SWITCHING ICON” in STEPS37), the output program 65 switches the designation operation IDtemporarily stored in the data storage area 62B, from the operation IDof the printing operation to the operation ID of the FAX transmittingoperation. Further, in STEP S35, the output program 65 performs apreview display processing of controlling the display 53 again todisplay the preview screen shown in FIG. 11B. The preview screen shownin FIG. 11B is an example of a preview image including a second previewimage 132, a device icon 119, a FAX instructing icon 133, and a printswitching icon 134.

The second preview image 132 is an image which is faxed the map image130 represented by the map image data to a device and is recorded on arecording sheet by the device receiving the fax. The second previewimage 132 is different from the first preview image 131, for example, inthat it includes a FAX header. For example, the FAX header includes aname representing the FAX transmission source, and a FAX transmissiontime. The FAX instructing icon 133 is an example of a second outputinstructing object to designate the FAX transmitting operation as adesignation operation and corresponding to an instruction for making thedesignation device perform the FAX transmitting operation of thedesignation data. The print switching icon 134 is an example of a secondoperation switching object corresponding to an instruction for switchingthe provisional designation operation from the FAX transmittingoperation to the printing operation.

When the output program 65 receives selection of the print switchingicon 134 via the user interface 54 (“SWITCHING ICON” in STEP S37), itswitches the designation operation ID temporarily stored in the datastorage area 62B, from the operation ID of the FAX transmittingoperation to the operation ID of the printing operation. Further, inSTEP S35, the output program 65 controls the display 53 to display thepreview screen shown in FIG. 10A again. Also, when the output program 65receives selection of the FAX instructing icon 133 via the userinterface 54 (“OUTPUT ICON” in STEP S37), in STEP S38, the outputprogram transmits FAX instructing information to the MFP 10A which isthe designation device, via the network interface 55. The FAXinstructing information is an example of output instructing informationfor making the designation device perform the FAX transmitting operationof the designation data.

The FAX instructing information of the present embodiment includes themap image data being the designation data, the designation operation IDidentifying the FAX transmitting operation being the designationoperation, and designation information (such as a phone number)specifying an external device being the FAX transmission destination.Then, although not shown, the control program 35 receives the FAXinstructing information from the portable terminal via the networkinterface 25. The control program 35 controls the FAX unit 13 to performthe FAX transmitting operation according to the received FAX instructinginformation. In other words, the FAX unit 13 faxes the map image dataincluded as content data in the FAX instructing information, to theexternal device specified by the designation information.

Also, for example, when the output program 65 receives selection of thedevice icon 119 of the preview screen shown in FIG. 10B (“DEVICE ICON”in STEP S37), in STEP S34, the output program performs the deviceselecting processing shown in FIG. 6. Further, in STEP S41, the outputprogram 65 specifies MFPs 10 being able to perform the output operationspecified by the designation operation ID, from among the plurality ofMFPs 10 being able to be communicated via the network interface 55. Theother processing have been already described, and thus repetitivedescriptions will be omitted.

Also, for example, when the output program 65 receives selection of thedevice icon 122 included in the device selection screen shown in FIG.8B, via the user interface 54, the output program switches thedesignation device ID temporarily stored in the data storage area 62B,from the device ID “MFP-A” of the MFP 10A to the device ID “MFP-B” ofthe MFP 10B. Further, in STEP S35, the output program 65 controls thedisplay 53 to display a preview screen shown in FIG. 12. The previewscreen shown in FIG. 12 is different from the preview screen shown inFIG. 10B in that it includes the device icon 120 instead of the deviceicon 119.

Moreover, when the back icon 82 displayed together with the previewscreen shown in FIG. 10B, 11A, 11B, or 12 is selected, the map program66 is executed again in the foreground. In other words, the OS 64control the output program 65, which is being executed in theforeground, to be executed in the background and executes the mapprogram 66 in the foreground. Further, the map program 66 executed inthe foreground displays the map designation screen shown in FIG. 10A, onthe display 53.

[Effects of Present Embodiment]

According to the above described embodiment, in a preview screen whichis displayed in a case where a designation device is able to perform aplurality of output operations, both of an output instructing icon andan operation switching icon are displayed. Therefore, content data isoutput by a target operation designated from among the plurality ofoutput operations by the user. In other words, it is possible toinstruct a designation device being able to perform a plurality ofoutput operations to perform any one of the plurality of outputoperations. Meanwhile, in a preview screen which is displayed in a casewhere a designation device is able to perform only one output operation,an output instructing icon for performance of the corresponding outputoperation is displayed, but any operation switching icon is notdisplayed. Therefore, it is possible to make the user recognize that thedesignation device is able to perform only one output operation.

Also, in the above described embodiment, an example in which anyoperation switching object is not displayed in the preview screen shownin FIG. 11A has been described. However, the method of making itimpossible to select an operation switching object is not limitedthereto. For example, the operation switching object may be grayed out.In this case, even if the output program 65 receives selection of theoperation switching object grayed out, via the user interface 54, theoutput program will not perform the device selecting processing. Also,in the case where the designation device is able to perform only oneoutput operation, the output program 65 may make the designation deviceperform the corresponding output operation without performing thepreview display processing.

Also, according to the above described embodiment, before making a MFP10 output designation data, the output program controls the display 53to display a preview screen, whereby it is possible to make user confirman output result image. As a result, it becomes easy to obtain a desiredoutput result desired by the user. In other words, it is possible tosuppress the processing from being re-performed due to an output resultdifferent from a user's intention.

Also, according to the above described embodiment, it is possible toreceive designation of a MFP 10 to perform a designation operation viathe device icon 119 or 120. Here, a screen transition from a previewscreen to the main screen by the back icon 82 is possible in thestandard activation processing, but is not impossible in the externalactivation processing. For this reason, the device icon 119 or 120 needsonly to be included in the main screen of the standard activationprocessing and a preview screen of the external activation processing.Meanwhile, a preview screen of the standard activation processing doesnot necessarily need to include the device icon 119 or 120.

Further, according to the above described embodiment, when the operationinformation record is updated, a device switching message is displayedin a main screen which is subsequently displayed. Therefore, it ispossible to make the user recognize the update of the designationdevice. Also, operations which is able to be performed may differdepending on the MFPs 10, and in this case, the user can recognize thatoperations become usable or unusable, by switching of the designationdevice.

Also, in the device selecting processing which is performed in STEP S33,the processing of STEP S45 may be omitted. In other words, designationof a MFP 10 in STEP S33 may be used only in output instructinginformation transmission of STEP S38 which is performed immediatelyafter STEP S33, and it may be unnecessary to store an operationinformation record including the device ID and operation information ofthe corresponding MFP 10 in the data storage area 62B.

Also, in the portable terminal 50 of the above described embodiment,various programs stored in the program storage area 62A of the memory 62are executed by the CPU 61, whereby individual processing to beperformed by the controller of this disclosure are implemented. However,the configuration of the controller is limited thereto, and the whole ora part of the controller may be implemented by hardware such as an ICand the like.

Further, this disclosure can be implemented as the portable terminal 50and can also be implemented as a program making the portable terminal 50perform the processing. Furthermore, the corresponding program may berecorded in non-transitory recording media to be provided. Thenon-transitory recording media may include not only CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMsbut also a memory mounted on a server which can be connected to theportable terminal 50 via the communication network 101. Further, theprogram stored in the memory of the server may be distributed asinformation or a signal representing the corresponding program, via thecommunication network 101 such as the Internet.

What is claimed is:
 1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storingoutput instructions to control a portable terminal including a userinterface, a memory, and a network interface, the network interfacebeing configured to be electrically connected to a plurality of outputdevices each of which is able to perform at least one of a plurality ofoutput operations of outputting content data, the memory beingconfigured to store activation source instructions that are able tocause the portable terminal to activate the output instructions and toperform a processing of notifying the output instructions of dataidentification information identifying the content data, the outputinstructions and the activation source instructions being executable bya processor, the output instructions causing the portable terminal toperform operations comprising: performing, in response to a useroperation of designating one of the plurality of output devices via theuser interface, a storage control processing of storing deviceidentification information identifying the designated output device, inthe memory; performing, when the output instructions are activated bythe activation source instructions, a first acquiring processing ofacquiring the data identification information; performing a secondacquiring processing of acquiring operation information representingoutput operations, which is able to be performed by the output deviceidentified by the device identification information; performing a firstdetermining processing of determining whether the operation informationrepresents one output operation or a plurality of output operations;performing, when it is determined in the first determining processingthat the operation information represents a plurality of outputoperations, a first receiving processing of receiving an operation ofdesignating a target operation which one of the plurality of outputoperations represented by the operation information, via the userinterface; performing a first output instructing processing oftransmitting output instructing information to the output device via thenetwork interface, the output instructing information being informationfor outputting the content data identified by the data identificationinformation by the target operation; and performing, when it isdetermined in the first determining processing that the operationidentification information represents one output operation, a secondoutput instructing processing of transmitting the output instructinginformation to the output device via the network interface, wherein thetarget operation of the second output instructing processing is theoutput operation represented by the operation information.
 2. Thenon-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 1, whereinthe output operations include a first operation, and a second operationdifferent from the first operation, wherein the portable terminalincludes a display, and wherein the output instructions cause theportable terminal to perform operations comprising: performing a previewdisplay processing of controlling the display to display a previewscreen including: a preview image representing an image, which will beobtained by outputting the content data by the target operation; anoutput instructing object to designate the target operation; and anoperation switching object to switch the target operation; receiving, inthe first receiving processing, a user operation of selecting an objectincluded in the preview screen, via the user interface; controlling, inthe preview display processing in a case where it is determined in thefirst determining processing that the operation information represents aplurality of output operations, controlling the display to display thepreview screen including a first preview image, a first outputinstructing object, and a first operation switching object, wherein thefirst preview image is a preview image which will be obtained byoutputting the content data by the first operation, the first outputinstructing object is an output instructing object to designate thefirst operation as the target operation, and the first operationswitching object is an operation switching object to switch from thefirst operation to the second operation; performing, in response toselection of the first output instructing object in the first receivingprocessing, the first output instructing processing; and performing, inresponse to selection of the first operation switching object in thefirst receiving processing, the preview display processing ofcontrolling the display to display a preview screen including a secondpreview image, a second output instructing object, and a secondoperation switching object, wherein the second preview image is apreview image which will be obtained by outputting the content data bythe second operation, the second output instructing object is an outputinstructing object to designate the second operation as the targetoperation, and the second operation switching object is an operationswitching object to switch from the second operation to the firstoperation.
 3. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according toclaim 2, wherein the output instructions cause the portable terminal toperform operations comprising: performing, when it is determined in thefirst determining processing that the operation information representsone output operation, the preview display processing of controlling thedisplay to display a preview screen in which it is not able to selectthe operation switching object.
 4. The non-transitory computer-readablemedium according to claim 2, wherein the device identificationinformation identifies a first device which is one of the plurality ofoutput devices, wherein the output instructions cause the portableterminal to perform operations comprising: controlling, in the previewdisplay processing, the display to display the preview screen furtherincluding a device switching object, wherein the device switching objectis an object to switch the output device that is controlled to performthe output operation, and performing, in response to selection of thedevice switching object in the first receiving processing, a specifyingprocessing of specifying output devices being able to perform the firstoperation from among the plurality of output devices being able to becommunicated via the network interface; a second receiving processing ofreceiving a user operation of designating a second device which is oneof the output devices specified in the specifying processing, via theuser interface; and the second acquiring processing and the firstdetermining processing for the second device.
 5. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium according to claim 4, wherein the outputinstructions cause the portable terminal to perform operationscomprising: controlling, in the preview display processing in a casewhere the output instructions are activated by the activation sourceinstructions, the display to display the preview screen furtherincluding the device switching object; performing, when an operatingsystem of the portable terminal receives a user operation to activateand the output instructions are activated by the operating system, afirst display processing of controlling the display to display anoperation selection screen, the operation selection screen including anoperation designation object, which is corresponding to outputoperations being able to be performed by the first device, and thedevice switching object; performing a third receiving processing ofreceiving a user operation of selecting an object included in theoperation selection screen, via the user interface; and performing, inresponse to selection of an operation designation object in the thirdreceiving processing, a second display processing of controlling thedisplay to display a data selection screen, the data selection screenincluding a plurality of data objects corresponding to the content data,respectively; and performing, a fourth receiving processing of receivinga user operation of selecting an object included in the data selectionscreen, via the user interface; performing, in response to selection ofa data object in the fourth receiving processing, the preview displayprocessing of controlling the display to display a preview screen whichdoes not include the device switching object; and performing, inresponse to selection of an output instructing object in the firstreceiving processing, a third output instructing processing oftransmitting the output instructing information to the first device viathe network interface, wherein the output instructing information of thethird output instructing processing is information for outputting thecontent data designated in the fourth receiving processing by the outputoperation designated in the third receiving processing.
 6. Thenon-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 5, wherein aback object is displayed together with the preview screen on thedisplay, and the back object is an object to switch from the previewscreen to a previous screen, and the previous screen is a screendisplayed on the display immediately before the preview screen isdisplayed on the display, and in response to selection of the backobject via the user interface in a case where the output instructionsare activated by the operating system, the display displays the dataselection screen as the previous screen; and in response to selection ofthe back object via the user interface in a case where the outputinstructions are activated by the activation source instructions, theactivation source instructions is executed in a foreground instead ofthe output instructions, wherein the foreground is in a state where ascreen according to execution of the activation source instructions isdisplayed in a display area of the display, wherein the activationsource instructions executed in the foreground displays a screendisplayed immediately before activation of the output instructions, asthe previous screen.
 7. The non-transitory computer-readable mediumaccording to claim 5, wherein the output instructions cause the portableterminal to perform operations comprising: performing, in response toperformance of the second receiving processing, the output instructionsmakes the portable terminal perform an updating processing of updatingthe device identification information stored in the memory, with deviceidentification information identifying the second device, andperforming, in the first display processing that is initially performedafter the updating processing is performed, a notification that thedevice identification information stored in the memory has been updated.8. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 4,wherein the output instructions cause the portable terminal to performoperations comprising: performing a second determining processing ofdetermining whether the device identification information is stored inthe memory; performing, when the first acquiring processing is performedand it is determined in the second determining processing that thedevice identification information is stored, the second acquiringprocessing and the first determining processing; and performing, whenthe first acquiring processing is performed, and it is determined in thesecond determining processing that the device identification informationis not stored, the specifying processing and the first receivingprocessing.
 9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according toclaim 1, wherein the memory stores type information representing thetype of the content data, corresponding to one or more outputoperations, in advance, and wherein the output instructions causes theportable terminal to perform operations comprising: determining, in thefirst determining processing, whether the plurality of output operationsrepresented by the operation information corresponds to the typeinformation of the content data identified by the data identificationinformation.
 10. A portable terminal including a user interface, amemory, a network interface, and a controller, wherein the networkinterface is configured to be electrically connected to a plurality ofoutput devices, each of which is able to perform at least one of aplurality of output operations of outputting content data, wherein thememory is configured to stores output instructions and an activationsource instructions, wherein the controller being executing theactivation source instructions is configured to activate the outputinstructions and notify the output instructions of data identificationinformation identifying the content data, wherein the controller beingexecuting the output instructions performs, in response to a useroperation of designating one of the plurality of output devices via theuser interface, a storage control processing of storing deviceidentification information identifying the designated output device inthe memory; wherein, when the output instructions are activated by theactivation source instructions, the output instructions cause theportable terminal to perform operations comprising: performing a firstacquiring processing of acquiring the data identification information;performing a second acquiring processing of acquiring operationinformation representing output operations, which is able to beperformed by the output device identified by the device identificationinformation; and performing a first determining processing ofdetermining whether the operation information represents one outputoperation or a plurality of output operations, performing, when it isdetermined in the first determining processing that the operationinformation represents a plurality of output operations, a firstreceiving processing of receiving a user operation of designating atarget operation which one of the plurality of output operationsrepresented by the operation information, via the user interface;performing a first output instructing processing of transmitting outputinstructing information to the output device via the network interface,the output instructing information being information for outputting thecontent data identified by the data identification information by thetarget operation; and performing, when it is determined in the firstdetermining processing that the operation identification informationrepresents one output operation, a second output instructing processingof transmitting the output instructing information to the output devicevia the network interface, wherein the target operation of the secondoutput instructing processing is the output operation represented by theoperation information.